Canadian Heritage Committee on Oct. 20th, 2025

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Are you saying all of them are equally diverse?

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

I would say they are all striving to achieve the proper balance in terms of subject matter, interviewees and diversity of points of view.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

So there would be no bias at the CBC.

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

Well, I would say that's not our policy. That's not our practice. I'm not oblivious to the fact that some people claim there is bias, but that's not how we work.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

What's your perception? You're the head of the organization.

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

My perception is that we are working very hard to try to bring accurate, fact-based news and information to Canadians every day.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

There's no bias at the CBC, according to you.

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

There's no bias, according to me.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Okay. Interesting.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Thank you.

Mr. Ntumba, you have the floor for six minutes.

[Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba, Liberal, Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, QC]

Good afternoon, Ms. Bouchard.

In two minutes, can you tell us how you see CBC/Radio-Canada's role in the Canadian digital landscape in an online world full of disinformation?

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

As a public service media outlet, we play a particularly important role in the digital age. For many years, we have helped transform the relationship between Canadians and their public broadcaster. We have gone from a traditional, linear and analog mode of transmission to a digital one. We were pioneers in this area and we continue to be. This is very important, because Canadians are increasingly exposed to information from foreign sources, which dominates social media in particular.

Canadian news has become even more scarce in the lives of Canadians since Meta decided to block publishers of Canadian news content on its sites. Therefore, we need to work harder to ensure that Canadians can discover and access Canadian content in French, English and eight indigenous languages. That's our mission.

We also work very closely with international partners and other stakeholders to develop practices that help restore a semblance of civilized dialogue. We know that social media algorithms lead to polarization by rewarding extremes. There's little room for open dialogue and common understanding.

We're working on coming up with tools that will be available to anyone who wants to use them, including news publishers, so that people can have civilized discussions about current affairs. The purpose of public service media is to work toward the common good and create value for the public.

[Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba, Liberal, Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, QC]

Since you mention redoubling efforts, how can CBC/Radio-Canada better meet the needs of citizens on the South Shore, particularly in my riding of Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, in terms of local news and French-language content?

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

Francophone content has been our business for a very long time. As you know, we have close ties with francophone communities, both in major centres and in regions outside Montreal, as well as throughout Canada, in all communities where there is a francophone presence.

We do this not only through our traditional stations, but also through digital tools that allow us to create hyperlocal content, such as hyperlocal newsletters or news summaries in the form of vertical videos that are easy to discover and view. This allows communities to see themselves continuously rather than at set times or limited appointments on national broadcasts. This promotes continuity in relationships.

In addition, the presence of journalists in the field allows communities to express themselves and be seen not only at home, but across Canada.

[Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba, Liberal, Mont-Saint-Bruno—L’Acadie, QC]

I’m going to talk about diversity now.

I’ve heard about diversity and I’ve seen it on screen. Could you explain CBC/Radio-Canada’s current objectives in terms of diversity, equity and inclusion?

I am referring as much to representation on screen as to internal content and organization, particularly with regard to the recruitment, retention and promotion of talent from under-represented groups.

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

Before I took up my position, the organization had already put in place a plan to promote equity, diversity and inclusion. The results of this plan are available for your review. However, in the new strategic plan, we reaffirm the importance of reflecting Canada as it is today, taking into account the diversity of the communities that make it up. It is also important that this be reflected not only in our team and our staff, but also on screen.

We are therefore working closely with organizations such as the Indigenous Screen Office, or ISO, and the Black Screen Office, or BSO. We are collaborating with entities that help us develop production capabilities from these communities. We promote and develop projects.

When it comes to hiring and promotion, we have internal programs that aim to identify the leaders of tomorrow. The goal is to facilitate things, to overcome any organizational barriers that may remain in order to develop talent, who will then be able to take on positions of responsibility or develop their skills in various areas.

We therefore pay particular attention to achieving these objectives.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lisa Hepfner]

Thank you, Ms. Bouchard.

Mr. Champoux, you now have the floor for six minutes.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Good morning, Ms. Bouchard. Thank you for being here today.

This is a great opportunity to learn a little about the status of your work. I know you have been very busy since you took office 11 months ago. I am thinking in particular of all the planning work that lies ahead for the coming years.

You recently published your five-year plan, your strategic plan.

Before addressing specific points in your strategic planning, I would like to hear your thoughts on how these discussions went. I am referring in particular to information. Let me explain.

We live in a world, an era, where news is confronted with misinformation and disinformation. Facts become falsehoods, truths are twisted. I imagine this represents an incredible challenge for journalists.

However, as a public broadcaster, you must ensure that you provide information that is neutral, and as objective and factual as possible.

How do CBC/Radio-Canada’s news professionals present this challenge to you?

How could you address the public broadcaster’s obligation to report the news, notwithstanding the fact that a large part of the population is looking for news that is often prefabricated, somewhat distorted, and generally reflects their mood and the state of the day?

I would like to hear your comments on what this challenge meant in the discussions you had with your teams.

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

First of all, I'm not convinced Canadians are looking for misinformation. I think it's more that it finds them, and they get caught up.

That said, regarding the way people consume information, I would say they are more on the receiving end, because news is now streamed, like the news feeds on X, Facebook and many others. There's a ton of them out there.

Thankfully, sources like CBC/Radio-Canada are more thorough. Some private and community media are also available on digital platforms, and people are still turning to them.

Yes, we have to compete for our audience's attention, but our surveys show that people don't question the reliability of our services. Canadians still trust the information we provide.

The trick is making the information available to them when they need it on the platform they use. We have no problem reaching people on our platforms, whether it's the CBC News website or the Radio-Canada Info app. However, some people don't visit our sites, because they're glued to other media, like YouTube.

Part of our strategy regarding those who don't visit Canadian news platforms will be to meet them where they are and bring that content to them, to make sure they can find it, so it becomes a daily news source.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

We agree that on platforms like X, there are more comments than news.

It seems to be the new thing. People tend to get their information from comments more than traditional news sources, like CBC/Radio-Canada. Maybe that's the challenge for your news rooms, fighting a style, in this case commentary, that they can't use, since commenting is not part of journalism.

Do your offerings focus more on that aspect? You offer a lot of programs, for example, that invite commentators of every stripe, sovereignists, federalists, Conservatives and Liberals.

Do you feel obligated to provide these types of programs to reach an audience that wouldn't turn to you otherwise?

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

Inviting commentators is part of a balanced way to share information.

There are facts, and there is on-the-ground reporting. We feel on-the-ground reporting is important, which is why we want to be more present on the regional and global stages. There are few media organizations in Canada with the capacity to provide international coverage. It's a very important element to keep Canadians informed of what's going on in the world.

It is also important to offer different news formats depending on how people get their information, including formats adapted to young audiences, like our Mon actualité jeunesse, or MAJ, section. It presents current affairs in a way that is tailored to teenagers. We also offer the journalism laboratory Rad, which is intended for young adults.

We have to keep developing formats that reflect how the demographic groups we want to target get their information.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Among the groups you're targeting or trying to reach are those who don't use your platforms and those who often criticize or disparage CBC/Radio‑Canada.

How are you reaching those who criticize your organization?

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

I observed a real paradox in my first few weeks in this position when I visited the local news team in Calgary. I saw what a strong and effective newsroom it was, which explains why CBC Radio One ranked first in the Calgary market. The fact that the journalism we provide is so popular in Calgary must mean something.

Calgary is not the only city where our radio offerings rank first. The reason is that the services are local. Local service fosters trust.

Across all our service offerings, we realize that we need to keep nurturing this local connection through our digital platforms, as we've done so successfully with radio.

[Martin Champoux, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

We can come back to local and regional news later, since that should be an interesting subject over the next few weeks.

Thank you.

[Marie-Philippe Bouchard]

Thank you.